A pile of prize money offered in kingfish events

Conceivably, a kingfish angler could pocket more than $100,000 this week before the main event -- the BellSouth Greater Jacksonville Kingfish Tournament -- even begins.

The 25th annual GJKT embarks Monday on an unprecedented week of kingfishing, featuring five separate competitions and potentially record payouts.

Three tournaments will be fished Monday -- the VIP, with a first-place prize of $50,000 in cash; the new Tournament of Champions for past winners of the GJKT, offering a $10,000 cash prize; and the Southern Kingfish Association's Yamaha Pro Kingfish Tour, a two-day event with $40,000 in cash going to the heaviest two-fish aggregate catch.

That's 100 grand for winning all three, not counting calcuttas. Add in the general tournament on Thursday and Friday, and the overall weekly pot approaches staggering dimensions for a fishing competiton.

"This could potentially be the biggest week ever in payouts as far as kingfishing is concerned," said Jack Holmes of the Southern Kingfish Association.

"I think it's great," said Randy Crabtree, captain of the Vamoose boat. "You're looking at probably a quarter of a million dollars if you win everything."

KINGFISH TOURNEYPlaces available

As of Friday afternoon, about 600 boats had registered to fish this week's 25th annual BellSouth Greater Jacksonville Kingfish Tournament.

The general tournament runs Thursday and Friday out of Sisters Creek Marina.

Anglers may register online at kingfishtournament.com through Monday evening. On-site registration is also available up until 8 p.m. Wednesday at the marina.

Those wishing to enter Monday's VIP Tournament can register today at Sisters Creek Marina up until 7 p.m.

Photo contest planned

A photography contest is a new addition to this year's BellSouth Greater Jacksonville Kingfish Tournament.

Entries will be judged on how well they capture the color and atmosphere that surrounds the tournament.

Competition begins Monday at 7 a.m. and ends Saturday at 10 a.m. Winners will be announced later Saturday during the tournament's awards ceremony. The winning photos will be published in the October issue of Water's Edge magazine.

Co-hosting the contest are the GJKT, Photo-Grafx and photographer Fructuoso Navarro Ros.

For more information, call Barry Rabinowitz at (904) 242-0462.

The Vamoose is among a number of boats that will be entered in all three Monday tournaments. The VIP, with a revamped prize structure and $2,000 entry fee, is expected to draw close to 150 boats. About 75 captains have registered for the Tournament of Champions, and the Pro Tour event will have a field of 95 or so.

"I'd say around 70 boats from the pro ranks will probably also fish the VIP," Holmes said. "It should be a momentous VIP tournament."

The second day of the pro tournament will share time on Tuesday with the popular Publix Junior Angler Tournament, in which more than 500 youngsters age 15 or younger will fish for prizes only.

Anglers will take a breather on Wednesday, then fishing resumes Thursday and Friday with the general tournament whose field is capped at 1,000 boats. Prizes this year in the general tournament include six boats -- three each for the top three places in the largest fish and aggregate categories.

The first-place prize for heaviest kingfish is a 25-foot Contender boat, twin Yamaha 200-horsepower outboards and a Loadmaster trailer, a package valued at $115,224. Other boat prizes range from a 22-foot Sea Chaser bay boat to a 13-foot Boston Whaler.

Anyone breaking the tournament record for heaviest fish -- 55.20 pounds set in 2002 by Tom Rady -- by 1 pound wins a $20,000 bonus. The record, which once stood for 13 years, was broken three times between the 1999 and 2002 tournaments.

Participants could also win bonus money by catching one of five kingfish that were recently tagged and released. A tagged king is worth $1,000 if caught by a boat entered in the VIP or general tournaments. Should a youngster catch one during the junior angler event, a $1,000 scholarship will be awarded.

Outside of tournament week, beginning July 24 and continuing through July 15, 2006, a GJKT-tagged king caught anywhere by anyone will be awarded a free entry into next year's general tournament.

One of the kings tagged two weeks ago would be a money fish if it's recaptured this week, even without a tag. Ron Gunter, who won the 1994 GJKT, caught, tagged and released a king that measured 42 inches long and sported a 26-inch girth. Gunter calculated the weight of the fish, which was caught within 4 miles of the Mayport jetties, at 35 pounds.

The other tagged kings were all small, under 10 pounds. One was released this past Wednesday at the BB reef, two were tagged at the Middle Grounds, and another at RL reef.

"I'd love to see one of the tagged kings caught," Gunter said. "What I'd really love to see is it caught by a junior angler during the junior angler tournament."

Another prize opportunity during the general tournament is the Lowrance Treasure Chest incentive. The first 250 anglers who weigh in a legal king on Friday will select a key at random. On Saturday, key holders will see if their key opens the treasure chest. If it does, the angler can select from one of 12 prizes, each with a minimum value of $2,500.

Overall, this year's booty has anglers contemplating the possibilities.

"It elevates the sport," said Mat Pitman, who won the GJKT aggregate title in 1999 on his Blue Thunder boat. "It can be expensive, but you have to pay to play.

"If you were to sweep the whole thing ... that's quite a week of fishing."